


Colorful Colorado

by Fionhen



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Memory Alteration
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-16
Updated: 2014-09-16
Packaged: 2018-02-17 14:10:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2312402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fionhen/pseuds/Fionhen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Tony Stark learns about SHIELD's retirement protocol after an innocent flight over the Colorado Rockies with Thor, Natasha is a tease, and she and Tony watch two dead men share coffee on a bridge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Colorful Colorado

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Evandar](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evandar/gifts).



**Colorful Colorado**

**

“Okay...” Tony takes a deep breath and keeps standing right where he is despite Natasha's efforts to get him to keep moving. “Tell me what I'm looking at right now.”

Two men in a small town where they've stopped on the middle of a wooden bridge spanning a small man made creek. They each have coffee, from the same place as the one in Tony's hand actually. One leans back against the railings, the other looms in closer but not in a threatening way. They're both smiling. 

“SHIELD retirement,” Natasha answers. 

Their hands are touching now. Tony sort of wants to go and poke them both, he wants to know if they're just real to each other – if Tony just blinked and lost his mind – or if everyone here can see them and hear them. It's on the tip of Tony's tongue to start calling out their names. 

“So retirement is synonymous with death now?” 

Because Phil Coulson, everyone knows how he died. And Clint Barton, Tony wasn't there for that one but there had been a funereal. Tony didn't show up for that either and he hopes that if Barton was watching the whole time, he isn't pissed or something. 

“In some cases,” Natasha answers. “How did you find this place, Tony?”

Tony shrugs, becoming a little awkward as he watches Clint and Phil leaning up against each other. There is a sting of jealousy as he watches their carefree postures. “Thor and I-” 

Natasha's face lights up in this knowing expression and Tony hates that he's become the sort of person who blushes now. It's all part of learning emotions, he's told, having friends around him (family) and actually giving a damn what they think. Tony really hates caring about what people think of him but there it is, it's too late to stop it now. “Flying together again?” Natasha asks.

Flying together, racing together, escaping together. No one else can get into the sky with Tony the same way that Thor can and no one takes the same amount of enjoyment in their ability as Thor. “It's _fun_ , okay,” Tony says, defensive and obvious and knowing it. “Anyway, we're here to talk about this creepy town full of dead SHIELD folk.” Because Tony has figured it out more or less. 

It's a small town in the Colorado mountains, maybe a five hundred person population. Tony hadn't even seen it, not because he's unobservant or because he was too focused on Thor who'd been flying close beside him, but because it is surrounded by reflective panelling. Thor had been the one to notice it and Tony really wishes that he could crack the seal on this so called 'magic' of his and figure out how it all works. Honestly, Tony can sit with Thor for hours and listening to him talk is downright fascinating. The man knows this incredibly different sort of science (magic) which is all so close to Tony's own knowledge and a million miles away at the same time. It's been a long time since anyone has managed to give Tony's mind such a workout. 

“SHIELD gives us a choice,” Natasha says. Tony can tell by her expression – long suffering, Tony is learning to read her – that she's giving in to his demands for an explanation. “Sometimes the work is too much, we see too much, and there is no way to move past it, it weighs us down. At that point, we can retire like this. They alter our memories and bring us here. Here the people are protected, they don't need to worry, they can do as they please.” 

Tony snorts and glances up to the dome that surrounds them. Nothing visible and with shields so good that even Tony's suit couldn't detect them until after he'd already known they were there. “You're telling me that a man like Clint chose to be trapped in a giant cage in the middle of nowhere?” 

“Clint was already trapped with the memory of Loki. Now look at him and tell me what you see.” 

Tony looks. Clint is telling Phil some animated story but he and Natasha aren't close enough to hear the words. Clint gestures with his hands and Phil laughs. It takes Tony a few minutes to understand what he's really seeing that seems so out of place. Clint is focused on Phil. He isn't darting his gaze around every other moment, not looking back over his shoulder nor up at the sky because as far as he is concerned, no threat has ever come from there before. No one has ever tried to sneak up behind him. 

Thinking about it brings up the desire in Tony and he can't stop himself, he glances back over his shoulder and up again to the blue sky. 

“Don't tell anyone about this, Tony.” Natasha can sense that Tony's stance is beginning to waver. Maybe the idea of this sort of freedom is appealing in it's way. Tony could never do it. Forget what he knows? But Tony knows so much and every scrap of knowledge is something he has fought hard for. 

“What if they ever want it back?” 

“They can't want what they never knew.” Tony's grimace shows his disgust with the idea and Natasha smiles. “But it's locked in there. If we ever truly needed them or if they ever needed it. There are safeguards in place, ones we've never needed to use before and I pray we never will. Now are you done being curious? I have a date to get to.” 

“ _You_ have a date?” Tony asks, immediately wondering who and Natasha is smart because she knows just how to distract him. Clint would probably know. Once upon a time. Tony glances over to the two men again to watch them walking away together. “Okay. One more question. Did you purposefully put them together like that?” 

Natasha laughs. “No. They did that all on their own.”

**


End file.
